Can I use WIFI on a no-service smartphone?

I am unable to get suitable internet service at my home, because of the
rural location. I can only connect with a modem and all that is good for
is email and newsgroups.

Because I am retired I get a free Tracfone flip phone with 500 min per
month. It's a government program for low income. This program does not
allow smartphones though. I probably make 10 calls a month and use 20
minutes of the allowed time. But it's free and it is good to have for
emergencies and an occasional call when I am away from my home phone. I
mostly keep the house phone because I do not get a cell signal at home.
Again, it's a rural area and I am too far from any towers.

Once and awhile I need to use the web. That means I have to go to the
public library.

My neighbor kid, who is 19 or 20 has smartphones and spends a fortune
every month for all the latest apps and phones. He probably gets a new
phone every 6 months or so. He seems to know a lot about them, and he
told me that I can buy any smartphone, not get service on it, and still
use the web at any Wifi spot. I know of at least 3 fast food places, and
4 or 5 bars in town that have free wifi, as well as the library, and a
few businesses.

Is it true that I can go to any of those Wifi spots and use the web
without having any service on that phone? I just wanted to check, He
said he will sell me one of his older phones for little money. I can see
that being a benefit when I travel, so I can get weather reports and
maps, nd I do like to look on ebay at times for stuff. Of course I
suppose I could not buy on ebay if the phone has no service, but at
least I can check for stuff, and if I want to buy, I'll have to go to
the local library.

Thanks

Per :
Is it true that I can go to any of those Wifi spots and use the web
without having any service on that phone?

I have not tried pulling my SIMM card and doing that, but I cannot seen any
reason why you could not: there is no connection between WiFi and phone
functionality.

One caution though: any hotspot you want to use will either have to be "Open"
(i.e. no password needed) or you will have to know the password.

Restaurants' hotspots are typically, in my experience, not open - but the PW
is given freely to customers... sometimes they just print it on the menu.

OTOH places like our local public library and StarBucks have "Open" WiFi - no
PW required.

First time you try one of those "Open" WiFi's, though, keep in mind that the
lawyers want them to make you go to their special web page and click "Accept"
or something like that before you are completely connected.

Ask the kid to lend you a phone so you can try it out yourself: no need to
install your mail app or anything... just being able to connect to a web page
will prove the concept.
--
Pete Cresswell

On Sun, 15 Apr 2018 20:26:11 -0400, "(PeteCresswell)"
wrote:

Per :
Is it true that I can go to any of those Wifi spots and use the web
without having any service on that phone?

I have not tried pulling my SIMM card and doing that, but I cannot seen any
reason why you could not: there is no connection between WiFi and phone
functionality.

One caution though: any hotspot you want to use will either have to be "Open"
(i.e. no password needed) or you will have to know the password.

Restaurants' hotspots are typically, in my experience, not open - but the PW
is given freely to customers... sometimes they just print it on the menu.

OTOH places like our local public library and StarBucks have "Open" WiFi - no
PW required.

First time you try one of those "Open" WiFi's, though, keep in mind that the
lawyers want them to make you go to their special web page and click "Accept"
or something like that before you are completely connected.

Ask the kid to lend you a phone so you can try it out yourself: no need to
install your mail app or anything... just being able to connect to a web page
will prove the concept.

Thanks for the info. I am a little experienced with Wifi spots. Someone
once gave me a very old laptop computer with Windows 2000 on it. It was
a clunker, but it would connect to a wifi. I know the local McDonalds
and Hardees both have free wifi, no password needed. I used to use that
clunker till it finally died. I was gonna try to get another cheap used
laptop with at least XP on it, but they are bulky and I was told to not
leave them in the car in both extreme summer heat and winter cold. So, I
would have to constantly drag it in and out of the house.

There are three local bars that have wifi. One has the password on a
wall sign. The other two give it out to anyone who wants it, and I know
both of them. Library is also Open, and when I had that laptop I used to
sit outside the building and use the wifi even when they were closed.

Must I pull the Simm card to use it? From what I understand that
contains the personal data of the owner. Must that be removed, and why?

I actually have a smart phone, but it's at least 10 years old. I found
laying outside at a fair. I could not find any place to turn it in. I
brought it home, intending to get the owners phone number. I know
nothing about them, so I had someone who does know about them look at
it. He said that it was password locked and could not be opened and he
also told me it was an old phone and not worth wasting my time with it.
Until the battery died, it would tuen on, but I could not get into it.
That was at least 7 years ago, so it's old. I think it's still around
here somewhere. But worthless.

When I found that phone, I was always afraid to turn it on, thinking
someone woud trace my location and find me and accuse me of theft or
something. But now that I know a little more, that was stupid.

Good idea of assking that kid to lend me one. I'll do that, and if he
has a password on it, I'll eitrher get the password or ask him to remove
it so I dont need to enter anything. For my intended use, I dont see any
need for a password.

i do know I will need some strong glasses to see that small screen
though. My old eyes are not too good anymore...

Per :
Must I pull the Simm card to use it? From what I understand that
contains the personal data of the owner. Must that be removed, and why?

No.... WiFi and phone functionality are entirely separate.

One more thing: if you have any choice in phones, try for the biggest
screen.... in fact, given your use, you don't even need a phone and a, say,
8" tablet would serve your purposes even better.

10" ? ... depends on your use... if I were doing it and wanted convenience of
carrying (as in my pants pocket) I would go with 8"... otherwise, if I were
happy with having to carry it separately, 10" would get the nod.

Personally, I use a 6" phone and a 10" tablet.... but the tablet seldom
leaves the house.

OTOH, my technophobic #2 daughter has an 8" tablet that I sort of forced on
her - but which she now likes and uses a lot for email and online shopping...
but when I try to push a 10" tablet on her she wants no part of it.
--
Pete Cresswell

On Mon, 16 Apr 2018 10:14:04 -0400, "(PeteCresswell)"
wrote:

Per :
Must I pull the Simm card to use it? From what I understand that
contains the personal data of the owner. Must that be removed, and why?

No.... WiFi and phone functionality are entirely separate.

One more thing: if you have any choice in phones, try for the biggest
screen.... in fact, given your use, you don't even need a phone and a, say,
8" tablet would serve your purposes even better.

10" ? ... depends on your use... if I were doing it and wanted convenience of
carrying (as in my pants pocket) I would go with 8"... otherwise, if I were
happy with having to carry it separately, 10" would get the nod.

Personally, I use a 6" phone and a 10" tablet.... but the tablet seldom
leaves the house.

OTOH, my technophobic #2 daughter has an 8" tablet that I sort of forced on
her - but which she now likes and uses a lot for email and online shopping...
but when I try to push a 10" tablet on her she wants no part of it.

Not too long ago, I was looking at those tablets on ebay. They are not
all that expensive. I saw some in the $30 to $40 range. They are all
with that anderoid system. It appers there are different versions of
that, some are new others are older. The older ones are cheaper. I guess
thats kind of like using Windows 10 vs Windows 7 or 8. I dont much care
as long as it gets me online.

You must have very large pockets though. I could never fit an 8" in
my pockets. Maybe a 6" though. But carrying that thing around probably
would not be too bad, compared to a heavy laptop computer.

Sometimes kids drive me nuts with their small cellphones. They stick
them in my face and say "watch this". All I see is a blur of nothing. I
need to use reading glasses to see any of that stuff. Even my flip phone
I cant see a text message without glasses. So, yea, I think at least a
6" tablet, or an 8" would be a lot better for me to see. I cant
understand how anyone can view the details on ebay on them small phones.
And those kids are usually showing me some youtube video. There again,
too small for me to see anything... Sometimes when I have seen some
youtube video that I really want to keep, I have a friend download it,
then I give them a flash drive to put it on, so I can watch it at home
on my computer.

On Mon, 16 Apr 2018 10:14:04 -0400, "(PeteCresswell)"
wrote:

Per :
Must I pull the Simm card to use it? From what I understand that
contains the personal data of the owner. Must that be removed, and why?

No.... WiFi and phone functionality are entirely separate.

One more thing: if you have any choice in phones, try for the biggest
screen.... in fact, given your use, you don't even need a phone and a, say,
8" tablet would serve your purposes even better.

10" ? ... depends on your use... if I were doing it and wanted convenience of
carrying (as in my pants pocket) I would go with 8"... otherwise, if I were
happy with having to carry it separately, 10" would get the nod.

Personally, I use a 6" phone and a 10" tablet.... but the tablet seldom
leaves the house.

OTOH, my technophobic #2 daughter has an 8" tablet that I sort of forced on
her - but which she now likes and uses a lot for email and online shopping...
but when I try to push a 10" tablet on her she wants no part of it.

I should have asked. Do those tablets charge just like a cellphone?
The one problem I had with that old laptop I used to have was the
battery was almost dead and a replacement battery was almost as costly
as a newer whole laptop computer. Plus it needed a special charger. I
have a cellphone charger with what appears to be the standard plug on
most phones these days. I have a plug in one for the house and another
one for the cig lighter in my car. Do those tablets have the same plug?

Per :
I should have asked. Do those tablets charge just like a cellphone?
The one problem I had with that old laptop I used to have was the
battery was almost dead and a replacement battery was almost as costly
as a newer whole laptop computer. Plus it needed a special charger. I
have a cellphone charger with what appears to be the standard plug on
most phones these days.

The de-factor standard is 5v USB.

All the Android phones and tablets I have seen adhere to it.

Here is an example of an after-market charger that will, given the proper USB
cable, charge anything you come up with: http://tinyurl.com/ybcc8gzm

There are plenty of cheaper ones, but that one supports "Quick Charging",
which is a substantial convenience if the device being charged supports same.

Another plus for a tablet over a laptop is the speed with which you can start
using it.

My laptops take forever to boot up - or even come back from Sleep Mode.

My 10" tablet and phone are just "There" the moment I turn them on.
--
Pete Cresswell

On 4/14/2018 11:03 PM, wrote:
I am unable to get suitable internet service at my home, because of the
rural location. I can only connect with a modem and all that is good for
is email and newsgroups.

Because I am retired I get a free Tracfone flip phone with 500 min per
month. It's a government program for low income. This program does not
allow smartphones though. I probably make 10 calls a month and use 20
minutes of the allowed time. But it's free and it is good to have for
emergencies and an occasional call when I am away from my home phone. I
mostly keep the house phone because I do not get a cell signal at home.
Again, it's a rural area and I am too far from any towers.

Once and awhile I need to use the web. That means I have to go to the
public library.

My neighbor kid, who is 19 or 20 has smartphones and spends a fortune
every month for all the latest apps and phones. He probably gets a new
phone every 6 months or so. He seems to know a lot about them, and he
told me that I can buy any smartphone, not get service on it, and still
use the web at any Wifi spot. I know of at least 3 fast food places, and
4 or 5 bars in town that have free wifi, as well as the library, and a
few businesses.

Is it true that I can go to any of those Wifi spots and use the web
without having any service on that phone? I just wanted to check, He
said he will sell me one of his older phones for little money. I can see
that being a benefit when I travel, so I can get weather reports and
maps, nd I do like to look on ebay at times for stuff. Of course I
suppose I could not buy on ebay if the phone has no service, but at
least I can check for stuff, and if I want to buy, I'll have to go to
the local library.


I have done that with every phone I've had even before I've talked to my
phone service provider to get the phone activated.